I’m not talking about black magic or voodoo rituals. I’m not talking about cult rituals, or ring around the rosy chant rituals around the fire.
I’m talking about habits.
The habits we do everyday shape our lives. Period.
Here’s a great quote to emphasize this point:
“The chains of habit are too light to be felt, until they are too heavy to be broken.” – Warren Buffett
Do you think he knows a thing or two about creating good habits? Maybe. He’s only one of the top 5 richest people in the World.
Habits are everything.
I believe habits are magnified in the morning and set the tone for our entire day. It starts in the morning.
Most people are not positive or negative in the morning. They are neutral. They just wake up without an emotion. Then they react to stimuli. Good or bad, they are reactive by something that happens to them. Traffic on the way to work leads to bad mood. Get every green light on the way to work – good mood. You get the point.
I don’t like that feeling of not having control and being reactive to outside forces. How about being proactive when we wake up in the morning?
Ways to set get your morning going in a positive direction, which will lead to a great day:
-Wake up to some music you love. Don’t wake up to that damn buzzer or your iphone ring tone. This will cause major insanity by the time the iphone 12 comes out, which will be in about 3 weeks. There is a good app called “Nightstand” that will allow you to used your download itunes music, as an alarm clock.
-Get up early enough so you have at least an hour for yourself. Don’t wake up with just enough time to get ready and go to work. You’re not serving yourself by showering, pampering, and then driving to work in the morning.
-Say a positive affirmation or declaration to yourself in the morning. It could be a goal you are looking to achieve, a skill set you are looking to acquire, or just a powerful and positive statement to change your state. Notice the word statement has “state” within it. Interesting. Language is powerful. It all starts with word. Start your day off with the right WORD.
-This hour or more for yourself in the morning is crucial. There are many things you can do with this hour:
1. Read something that is inspirational, and informative, but at the same time entertaining. Find a nice little café near your home to do this.
2. Meditate – truly meditate and clear your mind of any thought (Read my blog post on meditation for more details on meditation)
3. Visualization – visualize your future self and future lifestyle you wish to obtain.
4. Work out. Go for a jog, or bike ride. Crawl in the mud with your dog, swim with dolphins, or power lift with football players.
5. Be one with nature. Go for a walk and take notice of the nature, animal life, and plant life around you.
6. Eat something healthy. Get energy through healthy food and drink intake.
7. Write down what you are grateful for. This will automatically put you in a better mood. Keep a journal of these lists. You’ll enjoy looking back on them a few weeks and months later.
8. Whatever works for YOU to get you going in a positive and powerful direction to improve your life!!
So, I’ll ask you as I ask myself; how heavy are your chains of habit right now?
The Time Is Now.
Joseph Metcalfe